Carpe Some Diem - Part I
My very first week in Japan I remembering chatting with an experienced AET (english teacher) friend about our contracts and wondering how long one year would go by in Japan. I wasn’t so worried about it - I was more than ready to get going, but I mean, there wasn’t any good way out if things did go bad. He said it’ll go by so fast you won’t even realize what happened. Well, now I'm asking, "What happened?" I have now been in Japan over 2 years and 4 months. I look back and I honestly can't figure where the time went. It seems like a few months ago I had that conversation, but at the same time I feel like I've been showered with so many adventures and important life lessons from God, I don't know how it all got crammed into such a short time. It is so obvious God wanted me here for this period of my life and it makes me excited to see what He has in store next.
Now having less than 4 months left in Mito, many of us are preparing for our move back home or abroad elsewhere. I’ve been hearing a common ideology popping up everyday. Horace coined the phrase Carpe Diem which in English is typically tranlsated Seize the Day. Among the Mito AETs it's better translated You Only Live in Japan Once. While I have no way of knowing if living in Japan will be a one time thing for me, I’ve found that this philosophy does directly translate to ton$$$ of fun. So after going to Tokyo DisneyLand for the 4th time, because, hey, when am I ever gonna get a chance to do that again, I have fallen trap to this luxurious way of life. I believe I’ve always Carpe'd some Diem, as old friend Rusty likes to say, but I used to choose cheaper Diem. Everyday I am now faced with daunting questions like, “Denver, when will you ever be able to eat a Subway sandwich in Japan on a beautiful Fall Saturday again?" (Closest Subway being 2 hours away.) So I eagerly throw down $60 for a day trip to eat at a sandwich shop I’ll be sick of a year from now. (Although I must say, it does taste that much better though when you have to work so hard to get one.) But that’s what my motto encourages me to do because, hey, I’ll only live in Japan once…perhaps.
Now having less than 4 months left in Mito, many of us are preparing for our move back home or abroad elsewhere. I’ve been hearing a common ideology popping up everyday. Horace coined the phrase Carpe Diem which in English is typically tranlsated Seize the Day. Among the Mito AETs it's better translated You Only Live in Japan Once. While I have no way of knowing if living in Japan will be a one time thing for me, I’ve found that this philosophy does directly translate to ton$$$ of fun. So after going to Tokyo DisneyLand for the 4th time, because, hey, when am I ever gonna get a chance to do that again, I have fallen trap to this luxurious way of life. I believe I’ve always Carpe'd some Diem, as old friend Rusty likes to say, but I used to choose cheaper Diem. Everyday I am now faced with daunting questions like, “Denver, when will you ever be able to eat a Subway sandwich in Japan on a beautiful Fall Saturday again?" (Closest Subway being 2 hours away.) So I eagerly throw down $60 for a day trip to eat at a sandwich shop I’ll be sick of a year from now. (Although I must say, it does taste that much better though when you have to work so hard to get one.) But that’s what my motto encourages me to do because, hey, I’ll only live in Japan once…perhaps.
posted by Denver at 2:16 PM
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